[Solved] Installing Windows 7 to a new pc.

[grandadfatboy]

Hi everyone,

 

I am considering purchasing a pc with the following spec from an online merchant for £400 delivered.

AMD X4 FX-4170 AM3 4.4Ghz

Gigabyte GA-78LMT

Vantage ATX Gaming Case

16Gb DDR3 1333 Ram CL9

1TB Sata HD

ATI Radoen 2Gb HD6670

DVD/CD ReWriter

7.1 Audio

No operating system

 

I am considering installing Windows 7 Pro 64 bit myself after reading the sticky at the top of this section. My questions are:

 

Is this a reasonable price to pay for a PC of this specification considering I will be editing video and photographs along with the usual home/office work flow?

 

When I install Windows do I make a partition say 50Gb - 100Gb onto which to install the OS and use the remainder purely for storage?

 

When I have successfully installed Windows do I then need to configure it and if so how is this achieved?

 

Your help and advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

ATB

Ian

[Ray1000]

Ian,

 

Ian,

 

I'm sure they'll be a good reason for having a separate partition for the operating system but it has always alluded me ... when I recently installed Windows 7 I put it in the main volume.

 

Presumably identifying and downloading the appropriate drivers will be the challenging part.

 

Ray

[KenB]

Hi

 

Is this the sticky you are referring to ?

click here

 

If it is you need to have had Win7 on your system before as you would need the 25 character Product Code off the Microsoft label.

 

This system has no O/S - so you would be expected to buy one.

Adding to the cost. ( about £125 for Win 7 Pro full version )

[grandadfatboy]

Thank you for the replies.

 

The drivers for the hardware are supplied on CD with the machine Ray, if that's what you meant regarding identifying and downloading drivers. As for installing the operating system onto a partition of its own, this was recommended by a friend from work. He swears by it, but I have my doubts and decided the safest thing to do was to ask for advice on this forum before going ahead.

 

I was referring to the sticky you identified Ken. It was after reading this thread that I thought that doesn't so difficult! I can't see why I couldn't install Windows myself, even easier when I have purchased a copy that is. Is installing an os a task a reasonably competent pc user can undertake? When you factor in the cost of £125 for Windows is this pc still a reasonable price and spec, or should I be expecting the os to be included for that price?

 

I have visited several custom build pc sites recently and all with similar results. I was astounded to discover what seemed like a similar spec to the pc I identified above, was in fact over £1000 and my budget will be just over its limit of £500 after purchasing an os. I do realise that the costs can be significantly different as components specs and quality can vary hugely.

 

Thanks.

Ian

Edited May 22, 2013 by grandadfatboy

[Ray1000]

Is installing an os a task a reasonably competent pc user can undertake?

 

Certainly Ian, You'll will have no problem.

 

Ray

[KenB]

Hi

installing the operating system onto a partition of its own

The reason some do this is - if there is a problem with the Operating System it can be re-installed again without disturbing anything on the other partition(s)

With a 1TB HDD it is probably a good idea to divide it into 2 or 3 partitions.

You could store your photos and videos on one for instance.

There is no need to do this as you install - you can decide later and create them when you are sure you know what you want.

 

is this pc still a reasonable price and spec,

We will need to involve one or two of our moderators to answer this for you.

I will leave a message for them :)

[grandadfatboy]

Thank you once again for your replies gentleman. I have decided that I will install Windows myself after your reply. It seems that there are no performance losses by partitioning the hard drive, so that is something I can consider.

 

I didn't realise that a moderator would be required to answer the question of reasonable price. Maybe you can advise me if the system I have identified is suitable for my video and photographic editing needs and the usual run of the mill pc activities. If it will then I will go ahead and purchase it. I do not intend to do professional editing and what I have done on my current pc takes almost forever, so I thought it was time to invest in a better model.

 

I only have a budget of £500 so I don't expect to get an Ferrari, but by the same token I don't want a Reliant Robin either.

 

Thanks again gents.

Ian

[Vr5fx]

Hi. Ian.

 

Would you mind sharing the website that you have found that PC on? The build isn't 'too' bad for price, but you really wont need 16GB RAM @ 1333mhz. You would be much better off with 8GB RAM @ 1600mhz (Faster memory).

 

Just dug this up for £475

 

Case : *Limited Edition* Neptune Blue Gaming Case

Motherboard : Gigabyte 78LMT Motherboard Technology

CPU : AMD Piledriver FX 6300 4.1ghz Six Core 14mb Cache

Hard Drive : 1TB Sata Hard Drive

Memory : 8gb DDR3 1600 Memory

Optical Drive : 24x Dual Layer Sata DVD Writer

Graphics Card : ATI Radeon 7770 1gb GDDR5 with HDMI

Operating System : Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit With DVD and License

1 Year Return To Base Warranty ( Upgradeable to 3 Years )

 

 

-Steve

[Plastic Nev]

Hi Ian, Ken was just throwing the discussion open for us all to have a look see for you.

 

I can certainly say though that what Steve Vr5fx has found is a double whammy!!

Believe me if I wasn't so short of cash at the moment I would be asking for one of them too.

 

For your needs that six core processor, added to the 8GB fast RAM and also a reasonable graphics card, you should find that a superb bit of kit and it comes with the Windows 7 DVD too, therefore ultimately a good saving as the £75 on top of the £400 is a lot less than the standard DVD on its own.

 

Nice find Steve.

 

Nev.

[grandadfatboy]

Hi. Ian.

 

Would you mind sharing the website that you have found that PC on? The build isn't 'too' bad for price, but you really wont need 16GB RAM @ 1333mhz. You would be much better off with 8GB RAM @ 1600mhz (Faster memory).

 

Just dug this up for £475

 

Case : *Limited Edition* Neptune Blue Gaming Case

Motherboard : Gigabyte 78LMT Motherboard Technology

CPU : AMD Piledriver FX 6300 4.1ghz Six Core 14mb Cache

Hard Drive : 1TB Sata Hard Drive

Memory : 8gb DDR3 1600 Memory

Optical Drive : 24x Dual Layer Sata DVD Writer

Graphics Card : ATI Radeon 7770 1gb GDDR5 with HDMI

Operating System : Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit With DVD and License

1 Year Return To Base Warranty ( Upgradeable to 3 Years )

 

 

-Steve

 

Hi, Steve,

It just goes to show that when you know pretty much what spec of machine one requires for ones most demanding task(s) it makes the search much easier. If you would kindly give me a link to this system I would be grateful.

 

Many thanks.

Ian

[Vr5fx]

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/140920473446?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649

 

The listing shows only an hour left, but they might re-list later. Or I can find another suitable PC if needed.

I bought my first gaming PC from these guys, with no problems, Other than a faulty HDD which they replaced free of charge.

 

If you have any questions, feel free to ask away. :)

[KenB]

I didn't realise that a moderator would be required to answer the question

When it comes to spending your hard-earned cash you need the best advice.

In this case - I was not the best person :)

[grandadfatboy]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

The link you supplied Steve was for a different seller on Ebay that I'd found. However, what I did buy from the seller you sent me the link to was:

 

Case:Vantage Blue Gaming Case

Motherboard:Gigabyte 78LMT

CPU: AMDPiledriver FX 6300 4.1 Six Core 14mb Cache

Hard Drive:2tb Sata Hard Drive

Memory: 8gbDDR3 1600 Memory

OpticalDrive: 24x Dual Layer Sata DVD Writer

GraphicsCard: ATI Radeon 6670 2gb DDR3 with HDMI Hyper Memory Upto 3.8gb

1 yearReturn To Base Warranty (Upgradeable to 3 years)

Cost: £350.70

 

I then purchased Windows 7 Pro 64bit from Pricegrabber for £104.50 free delivery. Total cost for new pc £455.20

 

I do need to connect this pc to the internet wirelessly. Is it best to get a pci or usb version?

 

Thanks.

Ian

[KenB]

Is it best to get a pci or usb version?

I would be inclined to get a PCI wireless adapter.

The USB versions are not as stable in my opinion.

 

If you have not got one I would advise a LAN adapter too. ( for ethernet connection )

It is always best to have an alternative.

[grandadfatboy]

Hi Ken,

A good friend has been kind enough to loan me a USB adapter, but he did say not to expect to much from it. He was correct. The distance between the pc and the router is 30ft max and best signal strength is poor, that is when it isn't dropping out. So it looks like the pci version. My new pc will be placed in the loft office/crafting room. This is some considerable distance from the router. However, I have just taken my laptop to the "office" and conducted a test with it. The signal has dropped from excellent to good in every area (4 bars lit out of 5) except in the remotest part of part of the room. The area in which my wife's and my pc's will be positioned continually held good (4 bar) reception. So I'm happy enough with that. do I purchase a 54mbps, 150mbps or 300mbps card?

 

On a different subject can you please advise me in which section to post regarding purchasing and installing a fan controller to this new Windows 7 pc please?.

 

Many thanks.

Ian

[KenB]

Hi

 

It depends on your router as to what you can expect for data transfer speed.

If it is wireless g you will get 54 mbs at best

If it is wireless n you will get 248 mbs at best.

These are theoretical - the reality is that you will get something less.

 

Wireless n routers should have a greater range.

 

Regarding the fan controller - post it in the hardware section :)

[grandadfatboy]

Thank you for that Ken. I will check on my router and go from there, but I think I will be installing a PCI version. If you would kindly mark this thread as solved I would appreciate it.

 

I will check in the hardware section first to see if my question has been asked and answered and if not I will ask my questions.

 

Thanks again.

Ian

[KenB]

No problem Ian - thread now "Solved" :)